A 74-year-old woman who threatened to chain herself to her front door to resist being moved from her home while refurbishment work was carried out has moved back in – and admitted she was wrong.
Sheila Fleck told Victory Housing Trust she would not move from her sheltered home in Leeds Way, Horning, when plans were announced two years ago to convert cramped bedsits into spacious bungalows.
But when trust chief executive John Archibald handed her the keys to her completely refurbished home she said: 'This man has given me another 20 years of life. I am delighted.'
Mrs Fleck has lived at the complex for 14 years, and was occupying one of 11 bedsits on the site. Her home has now been enlarged into a two bedroom bungalow.
She added: 'When Victory announced their plans, I stood up in a meeting and said that I was going to chain myself to the door – I didn't want to move out of my home.
'To be honest, I didn't believe what Mr Archibald was saying – I thought he was going to pull a fast one.
'But now I see that the upheaval has been more than worth it. I was an old woman living in a bedsit; now I have been given a new lease of life.'
'I'm big enough to say that Mr Archibald was right and I was wrong – and I now have a lovely new home as a result.'
The work on Mrs Fleck's home is part of a £1m project to replace 11 unsuitable bedsits, and extend and refurbish other homes on the Leeds Way site. The result will be the creation of 14 one-bed bungalows, four two-bed bungalows and one two-bed wheelchair-adapted bungalow, as well as a communal room.
It comes as Victory Housing spends £25m on affordable housing in the next 12 months.
The rebuild of Leeds Way at Horning, School Close at Ludham and Portalfield at Stalham are costing £4.5m and come out a £14.7m new-build budget, with other completions due at Church Street, Briston; Market Lane, Wells; Roughton Road, Cromer; Blackfriarsgate, Norwich.
Another £10.3m will be spent on improving existing stock.
Do you have a housing story in north Norfolk? Email nnn.news@archant.co.uk
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